Contact with poison ivy (Rhus toxicodendron) or other species of the genus Rhus, which also includes poison ivy and poison sumac, will produce various degrees of dermatitis in some persons. The allergenic oil of poison ivy is a mixture of four compounds each of which has the general skeletal structure of 3-pentadecylcatechol. See. J. Org. Chem. 24, 980 (1959).
The bonding that takes place between various water-soluble polymers and phenols has been described. Jour. Polymer Science 14, 1939 (1976). However, the utility of these compounds in the treatment of poison ivy dermatitis has never been reported.